Poor choices undermine Alonso's F1 legacy

Fernando Alonso will not race in Formula 1 in 2019. The door might not be closed forever on his grand prix racing career, but, as he looks set never to hit the heights of 2005 and '06 again, what legacy has he left from 302 F1 starts?

On October 22 2006, Fernando Alonso was on top of the world. He'd clinched a second consecutive world championship at the Brazilian Grand Prix, and with Michael Schumacher retiring it was legitimate to ask whether the Spaniard might go on eclipse his mark for grand prix victories and world titles. With 15 wins and 15 pole positions in his 86 starts, Alonso had the Formula 1 world at his feet.

Almost 12 years later, and he is stepping away from F1 having added 17 victories, seven poles and no more world championships in the subsequent 216 races. It's frankly pathetic that a driver of Alonso's prodigious ability has secured nearly as many seventh places (16) as wins during that time, and that's entirely down to the machinery that has been at his disposal.